Report urges Pa. to focus on child abuse prevention

HARRISBURG, (AP) — A new report by a children’s advocacy group says that as Pennsylvania works to improve its handling of child abuse complaints, it must also guard against any inadvertent weakening of efforts to prevent neglect and abuse in the first place.

The Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children released its annual “State of Child Welfare” report Wednesday.

The group notes that Pennsylvania is working to strengthen its child abuse reporting system in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky molestation scandal at Penn State. But it cautions that a “higher volume of abuse reports” that may come with tougher reporting rules would not necessarily mean the state is doing a better job of protecting children.

“Protecting children should not be simplified to a numbers game that leads to a false sense of accomplishment,” the report said.

Advertisement

A legislative commission has called on the state to enact sweeping changes to its child abuse laws, including stronger penalties for failing to report the crime, redefining what constitutes child abuse and expanding the list of people who are required to report it.

The Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children, which offered some of the recommendations included in last month’s legislative report, said the state must keep programs that work, including an intervention program that seeks to identify and rectify family issues before they rise to the level of abuse.

“If done thoughtfully, Pennsylvania can improve its child protection efforts without drawing resources or attention away from efforts that we know are working to keep kids in safe, nurturing homes,” said Joan Benso, the group’s president and chief executive.